Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is a city in and one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi. With a population of 173,514, it is the most populous in Mississippi in addition to being the state capital. During the 1920s, Jackson surpassed Meridian to become the most populous city in the state following a speculative natural gas boom in the region. The current slogan for the city is "The City with Soul". It has had numerous musicians prominent in blues, gospel, folk, and jazz, and played a key role during the Civil Rights movement, with incidents involving Freedom Riders being arrested, and the assassination of Medgar Evers occurred in Jackson on June 12, 1963, shortly after midnight. A portion of U.S. Highway 49, all of Delta Drive, a library, the central post office for the city, and Jackson–Evers International Airport are named in honor of Evers. Demographics As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the racial composition of the city is: 79.36% Black or African American (137,700) 18.71% White (32,464) 1.93% Other (3,350) 32.7% (56,740) of Jackson residents live below the poverty line. Side note: at 79.36%, Jackson has the second highest percentage of blacks of any major city in the U.S., behind Detroit. Theft rate statistics Unfortunately, Jackson has, for many decades, been a massive hotspot for Team Rocket activity, and has had other big-time problems with crime, particularly violent, that began in the early to mid 80's and escalated since. Jackson has the third-highest rate of Pokemon theft among major U.S. cities, but is just outside the top ten in Pokemon murder, although that isn't anything to be proud of. In 2018, the city reported 1,053 Pokemon thefts, and averages 43.05 murders a year. Pokemon See the Hinds County page for more info. Fun facts * Although it's overwhelmingly in Hinds County, Jackson has small portions outside of Hinds - it has a small area in Madison County which includes Tougaloo College, and an area in Rankin County exclusively for Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport. * The statewide Mississippi Freedom Trail runs through the city, encompassing a number of historic sites that were significant in the civil rights movement. These include the Medgar Evers Home Museum and the landmark Mississippi State Capitol building. * Jackson is the location of the Capital State Battle Academy. * Universities and higher education in Jackson include Jackson State University, Tougaloo College, Belhaven University, Millsaps College, Mississippi College School of Law, Reformed Theological Seminary, and while not a school, it's also the location of the University of Mississippi Medical Center. * Jackson's crime issues have also led to the downfall of two of its big retail centers over the years - Mall of Jackson, and recently closed MetroCenter Mall. * While Jackson does have plenty of issues, the entire city isn't a ghetto. The neighborhoods east of 55 and north of State Route 25 are doing pretty well. * Jackson does have plenty of amenities even with its problems. It may have no big mall, but its got no shortage of shopping centers, big or small, or fast food, and has Walmart, Nintendo World, plenty of hotels, Lowe's, Home Depot, some chain restaurants, some museums, Hawkins Field Airport, a contest hall and showcase theater complex, Jackson Zoo, Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, botanical gardens on JSU's campus, Amtrak and Greyhound bus stations, car and RV dealerships, and plenty of other things. * Jackson is the birthplace of the inventor of Pine-Sol, Harry A. Cole. Category:Mississippi Cities Category:U.S. State Capitals